At this moment a servant brought Ivan a despatch, which claimed instant attention, so that the receipt might be given to the messenger who waited for it. Ivan begged his guest to excuse him if he opened this urgent document. The abbé, with a wave of his hand, requested him not to mind his presence.
As Ivan read the letter a remarkable change passed over his face; he grew suddenly pale, his eyebrows contracted, then a sudden rush of color came into his cheeks. He held the letter before him, read it several times, while his eyes had a wild stare, as if he had seen a ghost. Then all at once he fell to laughing. He thrust the letter into his pocket, and returned to the subject he had been discussing.
"Yes, yes," he said, "I shall go to Countess Theudelinde's soirée, and I shall give a lecture before her guests such as they have never heard the equal; that I promise you. Science and poetry, imagination and learning mixed together, with dates and genealogy, so that the savants present will not know what to think; I shall give a lecture which will make every geologist a prince, and every princess a geologist. Do you follow me?"
"Perfectly," returned the other; not, indeed, that he saw what Ivan meant, but that he wished to encourage him. "That will be the very thing—first-rate!"
"What do you say to illustrations by means of an electric-magnetic machine, eh?"
"A capital idea, and amusing. My dear friend, you will have a succès."
"May I ask you to convey to the countess my acceptance of her invitation? I shall require a large apparatus."
"I can assure you in advance that the countess will be charmed at your kind offer. As for the apparatus and arrangement, leave that to her, she will be overjoyed when she hears that she is to expect you."
The abbé then took his leave, fully contented with his visit. Ivan again read his letter, and again sat staring into space, as if a ghost had appeared to him.
People said the Countess Theudelinde's Soirées Amalgamantes would certainly make history. The mixture was excellent: grandees jostled elbows with poets; academicians with prelates; musicians, painters, sculptors, actors, critics, professors, physicians, editors, sportsmen, and politicians of all shades gathered under one roof. It was a bold experiment, a brilliant society in thesi. Neither was there wanting the element of female attraction; all that Pesth held of beauty, charm, and grace lent its aid to the scheme of amalgamation.